A Sri Lankan cricket player has been questioned by police over the rape of a Norwegian tourist in a Colombo hotel room this weekend.
Danushka Gunathilaka, Sri Lanka’s 27-year-old opening batsman, has been questioned over the incident after his friend was arrested for sexual assault. It is alleged that the woman was raped by his friend at the Movenpick hotel on Saturday night, whilst Mr Gunathilaka was in the room.
"He has said he was asleep and was not aware of what had taken place between his friend and the Norwegian woman," a policeman told AFP on condition of anonymity.
The player has already been suspended by Sri Lanka Cricket for "misconduct".
The rape incident is the latest in a long string of assaults of mainly Western tourists in the south of the island.
The UK Foreign Office notes that there “has been an increase in sexual attacks against females in tourist areas” and warns “harassment- ranging from sexually suggestive or lewd comments to physical advances and sexual assaults - can occur any time or anywhere”.
